Need your expert input here gang. With a bedridden dh there are a lot of people coming and going here now other than just neighbors and family. Support personel who while so helpful and appreciated are not good about opening and especially CLOSING gates. They try but don't do very well. The gates are about 100 ft or so from the nearest electricity(and maybe 130 ft. from the house) and in the winter with the house closed up, many times neither me nor the dogs can hear someone's car horn(depends on the pitch). So, as I am paranoid about keeping my gates shut(dogs and ducks. LOL)I would like some ideas please about how to have something up there at the gates that would make noise and announce visitors. Then I can run up and open the gates and close them behind the people.

Get a big old dinner bell or one of those triangle things that grandma used to call folks into supper with. Hanging out near the gate and let them ring that. Or hang an old trumpet out there. Actually any country person too puny to make himself heard from 150 feet away prolly ought to be home. SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOEEEEEEEEEEEEE

I think I saw wireless, battery operated doorbells at a home depot. You can mount the piece with the button on it at the gate and put the ringer inside. I don't know how far the range is, though you might want to check them out.

Thanks for the wireless door bell idea "guest". Folio Mark..some of the nurses and support staff that come many miles out here to help are city folks. I have a time trying to tell them they should be wearing boots and jeans and not suits, ties or highheels! LOL You can forget them knowing anything "country" like how to deal with double-wide chain-link gates.

I do have signs on all of my gates that say "Please Sound Horn", but as I said IN MY FIRST POST, can't hear it inside the house this time of year. I think me and my dogs need hearing aids! LOL

LQ: Well we could go real low tech here. Suppose you run a long string from the gate to your DH and tie his end of the string to some tender bit of his anatomy. When someone comes to the gate, they can yank real hard on the string and he will be sure to give out a holler and let you know someone has come calling.
He's just laying there in bed and probably would enjoy the attention and making himself useful into the bargain. Just a suggestion.

I don't know if you could make this work outide, but maybe with some ingenuity. I use a baby monitor in my barn during lambing season which is about 400 feet from the house. The barn end has batteries in it and the house(receiver end ) is plugged in. I keep it on high volume and can hear even the birds chirping over there. You can't talk back and forth though, its not a two way intercom. The receiving end would have to be in a dry place. An old mailbox? With door off? And leave a sign there to talk into receiver or blow horn...that oughta be good and loud and you will come open gate.

But the earlier suggestion of a wireless driveway alarm sounds good too. Kate

the idea is for visitors to announce arrival WITHOUT leaving their vehicle - they already have a horn to use and won't - that's why i suggested the dog - of course you'd need a new sign - maybe "please do not tease dog - sheriff will destroy dog if he kills again" - or - "dog will not bite if not hungry - feeding time 2 AM" - or - "if right-handed, pet dog with left hand only" - let your imagination run free

Unroll enough wire to go from the gate to the house.
At the gate end install a "momentary" or toggle switch. Simple wiring, one stand of wire to one terminal, the other wire to the other terminal.

On the house end of the wire, fasten one strand to the positive side of a 12 volt battery.
Fasten the other wire to the hot or positive terminal of a horn, bell, or something like that.
The wire makes a complete positive terminal circuit when the switch completes it by being momentarily closed.

Fasten a wire from the negative side of the battery to a ground on the horn.

When someone at the gate throws the switch it completes the circuit and you hear it because it is right out side of the house, not 150 feet away.

Used horn, battery, switch, and roll of wire. Some expense, but not a lot.

L Q
They make a cordlss driveway alarm that sounds inside. They use a photo eye to sense the vehicle so youneed to mount higher than a varmit maybe 36inches or so.If you can't google one I will check with my oldmaid aunts on Sunday.

Hey thanks everyone.! Some good ideas. Joan, it's OK if visitors have to get out of their car to push buttons or whatever. They do sound their horns...I just can't hear them from way up there. I just don't want anyone coming in unannounced and not closing the gates well. We live on a logging road and there are times when it is being used by the trucks..I have a horror of my dogs getting out there! I'd rather know if people have arrived and I can run out and let them in and close the gates behind them. I'll start researching and doing my homework.

Well, you guys have now educated me on the vocabulary that I need to look. Now I have a confession to make.... I am scared to death of Ebay! Can't imagine even trying it. :no: How would a person know that they are dealing with someone legitimate?

I guess sooner or later I must join the 21st century but it's worrisome! All tips and advice as well as hand-holding welcome! LOL LQ

To be honest, you might be better off with one of those old gas station type bells. Yup, they still make them, found them a few days ago thru google, under 200 or so, last forever. We are planning to get one shortly. The reason I say this is that we go thru several of the wireless ones every year, not to mention the batteries they eat (and they don't work very well if they freeze)! We bought the cheaper 30.00 ones, this last one was 80.00 and now it's dead too! Even built it a little weather proof box...so go figure. If you decide to go the remote route, make sure you put it up high enough or else you'll be dingdong-ing on every critter or moving blade of grass around. No big deal to move them though.
I've been on E-bay since mid 1996. Make sure you check the feedback!!!! And you can find them (remote driveway alarms) at your local big box stores too. I think I even saw some at Sears.
Regards!
KAT

i think we're all a bit guilty of ignoring the KISS principle - quackers original desire (the primary one) was to make sure the gate did not get left open when visitors came or went and preferred to open and close the gate herself - the secondary desire was to know when visitors arrived -
KISS says: a chain and padlock on the gate and the key in quackers pocket solves the primary desire - a sign saying "honk to get the gate unlocked" solves the second desire (no batteries required)